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Economy
The skyline of Johannesburg's Central Business District as seen from the
observatory of the Carlton Centre.Johannesburg is the economic and financial hub
of South Africa, producing 16 % of South Africa's gross domestic product, and
accounts for 40% of Gauteng's economic activity. Mining is the foundation of the
Witwatersrand's economy, but its importance is gradually declining. While gold
mining no longer takes place within the city limits, most mining companies have
their headquarters in Johannesburg. The city has a great variety of
manufacturing industries, including steel and cement plants. Many banking and
commercial companies are also located in Johannesburg. Johannesburg has Africa's
largest stock exchange, the JSE Securities Exchange. Due to its commercial
importance, this city is the site of a number of government branch offices, as
well as consular offices and other institutions that are usually found only in
capital cities. There is also a very large informal economy consisting of
cash-only street traders and vendors which are largely missed in official
statistics. The Witwatersrand urban complex is a major consumer of water in a
dry region. Its continued economic and population growth has depended on schemes
to divert water from other regions of South Africa and from the highlands of
Lesotho, but additional sources will be needed early in the 21st century.
The container terminal at City Deep is purported to be the largest "dry port" in
the world, with some 60 % of cargo that arrives through the port of Durban
arriving in Johannesburg. The City Deep area has been declared an IDZ
(industrial development zone) by the Gauteng government, as part of the Blue IQ
Project.
Johannesburg's largest shopping centre is Sandton City, while Hyde Park is one
of its most prestigious. Other centres include Rosebank, Eastgate, Westgate,
Northgate, Southgate, and Cresta. There are also plans to build an extremely
large shopping centre, known as the Zonk'Izizwe Shopping Resort, in Midrand. "Zonk'Izizwe"
means "All Nations" in Zulu language, indicating that the centre will cater to
the city's diverse mix of peoples and races.
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